Newsline

Hilbert Searching for First Road Win

Release Date:

November 30, 2009

Contact:

The Office of Sports Information

(716) 649-7900 ext. 333

AURORA, NY – Road games for the Hilbert College men’s basketball team have not been easy for the Hawks this season. The team played at Wells College on November 30 and found themselves suffering another non-conference road loss, 94-61. The Hawks drop to 1-5 overall and remain 0-2 in conference. The Express improve to 4-2 overall.

Hilbert took an early lead in the game by making 3-point shots and hitting close jumpers. Along the way, the Express began to match basket for basket until they took over the lead within the first 5 minutes of play. Hilbert would not be denied and they fought back from a 7 point deficit to tie the game with 12 minutes left on a lay-up by Roman Brown (Buffalo, NY/South Park). Jayson Weigel scored in the paint then Chris Parrott hit his third 3-pointer for the game, putting the Hawks up again by 3. But that would be the final lead the visitors would have for the night. Wells went on a 27-16 scoring terror and took a 46-38 lead into the locker room at half time. The nine point difference only grew larger with every possession during the second 20 minutes of play with the Express gaining a 48-23 scoring advantage.

Sophomore Nick Piccone (North Chili, NY/Aquinas) was the high scorer for the Hawks on 5-10 shooting (2-5 behind the arc) tabbing 13 points, and close behind was freshman Chris Parrott (Warsaw, NY/Warsaw) with 10 points and 5 assists. Breaking into the scoring column with purpose was freshman forward Jayson Weigel (Hamburg, NY/Hamburg) who shot 3-4 from the paint, and 3-6 from the foul line for his collegiate highs of 9 points and team high 8 rebounds. The Hawks won the battle of the boards (53-50) but had only 3 steals for the game and shot only 20% in the second half, at a time they needed to close the gap.

“We had another great start to the game, but just a bad finish,” said coach deGrandpre. “Winning the battle of the boards was nice, yet our turnovers hurt us, and we need to take care of the ball better.”

Wells College, in only their second year of offering a men’s basketball team since the College went co-ed, is off to a great start, having won three straight games and four of their last five. Greg Jones came through for the Express scoring 24 points in 28 minutes.

Hilbert will be able to regroup before their next game on Wednesday, December 2 when they host Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference foe Pitt Bradford at 8 pm. Bradford is bringing in 2-0 AMCC record with wins over D’Youville and Frostburg State.

The Hilbert College Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) is hosting a Toy and Food Drive on Dec. 2 as well as Dec. 5. Please consider dropping off unwrapped toys and non-perishable food which will go to needy families this Christmas season.

Hilbert College, located in suburban Hamburg, N.Y., south of Buffalo, is a private four-year college founded in 1957 in the Catholic Franciscan tradition. With nearly 1,100 students, Hilbert is a dynamic Western New York college that offers career-focused majors, including one of the top criminal justice programs in the region, and more than 50 minors and concentrations. The college’s engaging, student-centered campus community offers numerous leadership, internship, and service learning opportunities from which students launch successful careers while making positive changes in their communities. The Hilbert Blueprint promotes a well-rounded student experience over four years – starting with the Foundations Seminar in the freshman year, followed by Sophomore Service, Junior Symposium, and culminating with the Senior Capstone. Hilbert has expanded its academic offerings with the college’s first graduate programs and new Accelerated Degree Programs geared to adult learners.